☘️ Hot and Sour Soup
💚 Veggie Super Chef Contest (1st Season) Voting Results - Thank you so much for everyone’s support, I am really pleased to tell you that my recipe was selected as one of the Top 6!
Here, I would like to share this super easy, yet absolutely delicious recipe with you. I hope you’ll have a go at making it.
The main ingredients for this soup are tofu, bamboo shoots, dried shiitake mushrooms, dried wood ear mushrooms, carrots, mung bean vermicelli (glass noodles), chilli bean paste, vinegar etc; cooked in a clear soup. The dish is characterised by it's sour, spicy, fresh, salty and fragrant flavours.
This soup is rich in nutrients such as protein, calcium, iron, dietary fiber, minerals, and vitamins. It is an indispensable and appetising healthy food which will helps to relieve heat in the hot summer.
Since dried shiitake mushrooms and dried wood ear mushrooms may not be something that people in the UK are familiar with, I have used fresh shiitake mushrooms in this recipe instead, and omitted the dried wood ear mushrooms. However, the traditional ingredients can be found in any Chinese supermarket, Amazon, and Sous Chef.
Shiitake mushrooms are one of the most popular mushrooms worldwide. They are prized for their rich, savory taste and diverse health benefits. Compounds in shiitake may help fight cancer, boost immunity, and support heart health.
You’ll only need 4-5 dried shiitake mushrooms (乾香菇) and 1 piece of dried wood ear mushrooms (木耳). The cooking method for these two ingredients are different to the fresh alternatives, if you have managed to find them and want to use them, let me know and I’ll be happy to explain.
I have found all the suppliers for the above ingredients and have attached the images in the comments below if you do want to give them a go.
You can get the fresh shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots and mung bean vermicelli from Tesco, just make sure you search online to ensure they stock them in the branch that you visit.
**** This is not a sponsored recipe.
✳️ Ingredients:
(serves 4)
200g medium firm tofu
250g fresh shiitake mushrooms
1/2 medium carrot
60g tinned bamboo shoots
50g mung bean vermicelli
4 slices ginger
1 tbsp sunflower oil
coriander- washed and chopped to garnish
✳️ Seasonings:
* 1 tsp salt
* 1 tbsp light soy sauce
* 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
* 2 tsp sugar
* 2 tsp sesame oil
* 3 tbsp dark balsamic vinegar
* 2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
* 1 tbsp chilli bean paste (豆瓣醬 Doubanjiang - you can add more if you can handle the heat)
* 2000ml water
* 1 tbsp vegan oyster sauce / vegan stir-fry sauce
* 3 tbsp corn flour
* 3 tbsp water
✳️ Method:
1. Soak the mung bean vermicelli in warm water until soft, then use scissors to cut into sections.
2. Gently wash and pat dry the tofu and fresh shiitake mushrooms and cut both into thick strips.
3. Peel the carrot, and cut into thin strips. Drain the bamboo shoots, rinse and cut into thin strips.
4. Cut the ginger slices into thin strips then finely dice into small cubes.
5. Mix the corn flour and water together to make a slurry and leave to one side.
6. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat, add oil, then add ginger and fry until slightly brown, stirring gently. Next, add the bamboo shoots and carrots, stir-fry together for a while, add salt, soy sauce, pepper, sugar and sesame oil, and fry until soft.
7. Pour in the black vinegar, white vinegar, vegan oyster sauce and chilli bean sauce. Then, add water and bring to a boil. Turn to low heat and continue to cook for 5 minutes.
8. Put the tofu and shiitake mushrooms in, gently move around with chopsticks or wooden spoon, and add the vermicelli, stirring everything around. Turn to medium-high heat and bring to a boil.
9. Whisk the corn flour water into the soup, a little bit at a time until you reach the desired consistency. If you like it thicker, add a bit more, or if you prefer thinner, add a bit less. After the soup is boiled, taste it and adjust the seasoning, then garnish with coriander.
